Vontobel Asset Management

The firm's investment decisions are led by CIO Benno Gassner, who oversees the overall investment process. Beneath him, Birgit Urner heads the equities team and Christoph Brehm leads fixed income. Portfolio managers have significant autonomy within the firm's concentrated-holding framework.

Vontobel's private-markets team sources deals through a combination of direct relationships with European and North American GPs, partnership agreements with niche venture capital firms, and internal origination from its public-markets analysts who identify companies approaching illiquid stages. Approximately 50% of its private-markets deals arrive via its own network, per the firm's 2023 annual report.

Vontobel operates as a publicly traded asset manager, not a family office. The founding Vontobel family retains control through a partnership voting structure, but institutional clients — including pension funds, insurance firms, and sovereign wealth funds — represent the majority of the asset management division's assets under management.

The private-markets platform targets mid- to late-stage growth equity, buyout, and credit opportunities, viewing early-stage venture as the domain of its separately managed venture arm. Typical ticket sizes range from $10M to $50M per deal, with a preference for profitable companies or those near profitability.

Vontobel has publicly stated it avoids direct investment in tobacco, controversial weapons, and thermal coal, consistent with its sustainable investment framework. It also avoids high-frequency trading, payday lending, and companies with significant exposure to illegal activities or severe human rights violations.

Vontobel Asset Management is a wholly owned subsidiary of Vontobel Holding AG, alongside Vontobel Private Bank and Vontobel Wealth Management. The asset management arm operates as a separate legal entity with its own board and investment committee, though it shares the parent firm's three-letter ticker and risk framework.

Vontobel employs a hybrid model. In public markets, it buys individual securities, but in private markets it combines direct co-investments alongside sponsored GPs with fund-of-funds-style commitments to specialist managers. The firm's 2023 annual report disclosed 12 private-market fund commitments and 6 direct positions.